Wikipedia

Graffiti

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For the handwriting system, see Graffiti (Palm OS).

The term graffiti is the plural of graffito, although the singular form is less commonly used. Both words have been borrowed from the Italian language, and along with the English word "graphic", are in turn derived from the Greek γραφειν (graphein), meaning to write. In its modern-day use, "graffiti" refers to a type of vandalism—deliberate human markings on property. Graffiti can take the form of art, drawings, or words, and is often illegal when done without the property owner's consent.

This wall in Gainesville, Florida has been set aside for use by graffiti artists and passersby.

Historical forms

 
Pompeiian graffiti.

Graffiti originally was the term used for inscriptions, figure drawings, etc., found on the walls of ancient sepulchers or ruins, as in the Catacombs, or at Pompeii. But it has evolved to include any decorations inscribed on any surface that are considered to be vandalism or pictures or writing placed on surfaces, usually outside walls and sidewalks, without the permission of the owner. Thus, inscriptions made by the authors of a monument are not considered graffiti.

The (believed to be) first example of "modern" graffiti is found in the ancient Greek city of Ephesus in modern-day Turkey and appears to be an advertisement for prostitution, according to the tour guides of the city. It is found near the long mosaic and stone walk way. It consists of a handprint, a vaguely heart-like shape, a footprint and a number. It is believed that this indicates how many steps one would have to take to find a lover with the handprint indicating payment.

The Romans carved graffiti into both their own walls and monuments and there are also, for instance, Egyptian ones. The graffiti carved on the walls of Pompeii were preserved by the eruption of Vesuvius and offer us a direct insight into street life: everyday Latin, insults, magic, love declarations, political consigns. One example has even been found that stated "Cave Canem", which translates as "Beware of Dog".

 
Vulgar Latin, as in this political graffiti at Pompeii, was the language of the ordinary people of the Roman Empire, distinct from the Classical Latin of literature.

On the other hand, Viking graffiti can be found in Rome, and Varangians carved their runes in Hagia Sophia. Many times in history graffiti were used as form of fight with opponents (see Orange Alternative, for example). The Irish had their own inscriptive language called Ogham.

Frescos and murals are art forms that involve leaving images and writing on wall surfaces. Like the prehistoric cave wall paintings, they are not graffiti, as they are created with the explicit permission (and usually support) of the owner of the walls.

20th century

 
A graffiti artist at work with spray paint.

In the 20th century, especially during World War II, 'Kilroy was here' became a famous graffito, along with Mr. Chad, a face with only the eyes and a nose hanging over the wall, saying "What No [scarce commodity]...?" during the time of rationing. Twentieth century warfare saw the advent of many new aviation technologies, closely followed by the advent of airplane graffiti, including the nose art made famous during World War II.

Starting with the large-scale urbanization of many areas in the post-war half of the 20th century, urban gangs would mark walls and other pieces of public property with the name of their gang (a "tag") in order to mark the gang's territory. Near the end of the twentieth century, the practice of tagging became increasingly non-gang related and began to be practiced for its own sake. Graffiti artists would sign their "tags" for the sake of doing so and sometimes to increase their reputation and prestige as a "writer" or a graffiti artist.

Tags, like screennames, are sometimes chosen to reflect some qualities of the writer. Some tags also contain subtle and often cryptic messages. The year in which the piece was created, and in some cases the writer's initials or other letters, are sometimes incorporated into the tag. In some cases, tags or graffiti are dedicated or created in memory of a deceased friend, and might read something to the effect of "DIVA Peekrevs R.I.P. JTL '99".

In some cases, graffiti (especially those done in memory of a deceased person) found on storefront gates have been so elaborate that shopkeepers have been hesitant to clean them off. In the Bronx after the death of rapper Big Pun, several murals dedicated to his life appeared virtually overnight, the same occurred after the deaths of The Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.

Other highly elaborate works covering otherwise unadorned fences or walls may likewise be so elaborate that property owners or the government may choose to keep them rather than cleaning them off. The wall in front of Abbey Road Studios in London has been a favorite spot for Beatles-related graffiti ever since The Beatles recorded there in the 1960s, left in various languages by visitors from all over the world. The studio makes no attemt to stop this graffiti, and has the wall repainted regularly to provide a fresh surface for inscriptions.

Some graffiti may be local or regional in nature, such as wall tagging in Southern California by gangs such as the Bloods and the Crips. The name Cool "Disco" Dan (including the quotation marks) tends to be commonly seen in the Washington, DC area. Another famous graffiti in the DC Metro area was found on the outer loop of the beltway on a railroad bridge near the Mormon temple as seen here. Its simple scrawl "Surrender Dorothy" summoned visions of the Emerald City of Oz and has remained on the bridge for nearly 30 years off and on. Arriving sometime in late 1973 pressure from the Temple has had it removed, only to reappear. This "giraffiti" was so well known among the mormon community that it was often mentioned by name in their newsletters [1][2] as an example of being misunderstood.

Theories and use of graffiti by avant-garde artists has a history dating at least to the Scandinavian Institute of Comparative Vandalism in 1961.

 
This construction scaffolding has been "tagged".

Some of those who practice graffiti art are keen to distance themselves from gang graffiti. There are differences in both form and intent. The purpose of graffiti art is self-expression and creativity, and may involve highly stylized letter forms drawn with markers, or cryptic and colorful spray paint murals on walls, buildings, and even freight trains. Graffiti artists strive to improve their art, which is constantly changing and progressing. The purpose of gang graffiti, on the other hand, is to mark territorial boundaries, and is therefore limited to a gang's neighborhood; it does not presuppose artistic intent.

Terminology

A number of words and phrases have been coined to describe different styles and aspects of graffiti:

  • A tag is a stylized signature, while a tagger or a writer is a person who "tags".
  • A crew is a group of writers or graffiti artists.
  • To line somebody's tag is to put a line through it and is considered a deep insult.

The phrase back to back refers to a graffito that is done all the way across a wall from one end to the next. This could be seen in some parts of the West side of the Berlin Wall.

Informal competition sometimes exists between taggers as to who can put up the most, or the most visible or artistic tags. Writers with the most tags up will gain respect among other graffiti artists, although they will also incur a greater risk that if caught by authorities, they will be held responsible for a greater number of tags.

File:Graffitti-face.jpg
Illegal graffiti can be elaborate, but may be seen as a nuisance

Graffiti is subject to different societal pressures from popularly-recognized art forms, since graffiti appears on walls, freeways, buildings, trains or any accessible surfaces that are not owned by the person who applies the graffiti. This means that graffiti forms incorporate elements rarely seen elsewhere. Spray paint and broad permanent markers are commonly used, and the organizational structure of the art is sometimes influenced by the need to apply the art quickly before it is noticed by authorities.

In an effort to reduce vandalism, many cities have designated walls or areas exclusively for use by graffiti artists. It has been suggested that this discourages petty vandalism yet encourages artists to take their time and produce great art, without worry of being caught or arrested for vandalism or trespassing. Some disagree with this approach, arguing that the presence of legal graffiti walls has not been shown to reduce illegal graffiti elsewhere.

File:Us-nogutsnofame.JPG
Computer generated graffiti No Guts, No Fame, its noticeable "anti-police" theme shows its artists frustration with the percieved illegal threat of graffiti, and also its artists belief that the possible penalty is worth the fame.

Many people regard graffiti as an unwanted nuisance, or as expensive vandalism that must be repaired. It may be seen as a quality of life issue, and it is often suggested that the presence of graffiti contributes to a general sense of squalor and a heightened fear of crime. Advocates of the broken window theory believe that this sense of decay encourages further vandalism and leads to more serious offences being committed.

To remove graffiti, high pressure cleaning can be used; it can also be painted over or, as a prevention, a specially formulated anti-graffiti coating can be applied to the surface of high-risk areas.

The Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 is the latest anti-graffiti legislation to be passed in Britain.

In August 2004, the Keep Britain Tidy campaign issued a press release calling for zero tolerance of graffiti, with support for proposals such as issuing "on the spot" fines to graffiti offenders and banning the sale of aerosol paint to teenagers. The press release also condemned the use of graffiti images in advertising and in music videos, arguing that real world experience of graffiti was far from the 'cool' or 'edgy' image that was often portrayed. To back the campaign, 123 British MPs (including Prime Minister Tony Blair) signed a charter which stated: "Graffiti is not art, it's crime. On behalf of my constituents, I will do all I can to rid our community of this problem."

Aerosol or "spray can" art

File:Graffitiforvandalismarticle.jpg
Graffiti in Melbourne, Australia

The strand of graffiti art which is considered one of the four elements of hip hop is usually denoted urban 'Aerosol Art'. Sometimes synonymous with "hip-hop heads," so-called graffiti artists have gone beyond that stereotype and are abundant even among middle-class white children. There are different genres, from Philly's wicked style to California and New York's wild style graffiti. Graffiti artists are classified based on their style or even on what surface they use.

Graffiti tagging existed in Philadelphia during the 1960s, pioneered by Cornbread and Cool Earl. Another Philadelphia product, Top Cat, later exported the characteristic Philly style of script (tall, slender lettering with platforms at the bottom) to New York City where it gained popularity as "Broadway Elegant". It wasn't until it reached popularity in the New York City subway system that it took on an extravagant artistic role, expanding from tags to full-blown "pieces".

One of the originators of New York graffiti was TAKI 183 – a foot messenger who would tag his nickname around New York streets that he daily frequented en route. Taki was a Greek-American – his tag was diminutive for Demetrius, while 183 came from his address. After being showcased in the New York Times, his tag was being mimicked by hundreds of urban youth within months.

It should be noted that there were other writers active in NYC before Taki, such as JULIO 204, but he brought the most attention to the movement. With the innovation of art, and the craving to gain the widest audience, attempts by taggers were made. What developed was a strict adherence to spraypaint, sampling foreign calligraphy, and the much anticipated mural (that usually covered an entire subway car). The artist was called a "writer," and so were groups of associated artists, called "crews". The movement spread on the streets, returned to the railroads where tagging was popularized by Hobos, spread nationwide with the aid of media and rap music; thus, being yet mimicked again worldwide.

One of the earliest women to become active on the graffiti scene was New York City's "Lady Pink". Also known as Sandra Fabara, Lady Pink starred in the classic 1982 hip hop film "Wildstyle" when she was 18. The 1984 film Beat Street documented all the elements and many of the personalities of the early hip-hop movement. Graffiti features strongly in the film, and one of the main characters is a writer who works on walls and on subway cars.

In the early 1980s, the combination of a booming art market and a renewed interest in painting resulted in the rise of a few graffiti artists to art-star status. Jean-Michel Basquiat, a former street-artist known by his "Samo" tag, and Keith Haring, a professionally-trained artist who adopted a graffiti style, were two of the most widely recognized graffiti artists. In some cases, the line between "simple" graffiti and unsanctioned works of public art can be difficult to draw.

Safety issues

Spray paint usually contains volatile organic compounds that are often highly toxic. Some graffiti artists who regularly work with spray paint develop neurological problems due to overexposure to VOCs. Compounds designed to remove graffiti can also be highly toxic (although the maintenance workers who work with these substances are usually more highly trained to use them safely.) This article from graffiti.org contains more information on the subject and recommends that spray painters wear a mask when painting.

Some heavy duty permanent markers also contain harmful VOCs, although the quantity of VOC released will probably be less than with spray paint. Those who use permanent markers should check the label and follow the safety instructions.

"Bombing" the trains

A primary _target for graffiti in urban environments are subway trains. This is especially true for New York City, where "going all city" is considered the holy grail. This phrase means to have your tag inside and outside on a train running each of the many lines of the NYC subway system.

The phrase "bombing" means to cover an entire car with a large graphic. There are two types of full car paint jobs:

  • below the windows
  • coverall (entire side, windows included).

Many instances of this type of artwork can be seen in the movie Style Wars.

Computer Generated Graffiti

File:Wiki-graffiti2.png
Computer generated graffiti reading "Wikipedia"

Since many graffiti artists are considered vandals, many have moved to creating computer generated graffiti instead, using computer graphics to mimic and expand on the styles of aerosol art. When such art is created on a computer, it is not technically graffiti, in the sense of being unauthorized, but it is called so because of the stylistic influence. Most of these types of artists are associated with ASCII art, ANSI art, and the computer underground.

Graffiti Art Battle

In the early 1980s one of the largest community "Graffiti Art Battles" took place next to the Bull Ring shopping centre in Birmingham, England. The city invited a selection of the UK's most renowned graffiti artists, including Wolverhampton local artist Goldie, Bristol's 3D (who went on to form Massive Attack), London's Mode from the Chrome Angelz, with Bronx Man Brim and his New York alter ego Bio attending for good measure.

Massive boards were erected with scaffolding in place to enable free movement of the artists. It was a rare occasion of the age for so many prestigious artists to come together on one wall - many battles would lead to gang rivalry especially if one artist would "bite", or copy, another's style. Clips from the Battle can be seen in a Channel 4 documentary titled Bombing.

 
Stencil art by Banksy. Brick Lane, London

Street Art / Post Graffiti

In the '80s and early '90s the writers Cost and Revs were the first to get up with their name with the new techniques that would be a new form of graffiti, i.e. Post-Graffiti (a term which comes from the French artist stak), also known as Street Art.

Street Artists use media such as sticker, poster, stencil but also paint and put up installations in the urban space. What they all have in common is that the work is put up illegaly. The aims are various. Some follow the aim of a graffiti writer to get up with a name or, in Street Art more likely with an image, others have a political aim. Many just want their art to be seen by the public. It is a worldwide movement.

Since the '90s Shepard Fairey influenced many of today's street artists with his 'Obey Giant' campaign. Other important Street Artists include C6.org, who incorporate new technologies into street graffiti art, Banksy, probably the most famous of the stencil artists, D*Face (UK), Stak, HNT, Alexone, André (France), Swoon, famous for the Cut-out Poster technique, Faile, (USA), Os Gemeos, Herbert (Brazil), 6-_-©IIIII>@rtist.info, Flying Fortress, Gomes, Graffitilovesyou, (Germany), Influenza, Erosie (Holland) and others.

A new form of tagging was created around 1995 in Berlin by 6-_-©|||||>@rtist.info. He painted his 500 000 "6" tags with lime on wildly pasted posters, garbage and on the street . 30 % of his tags he painted while cycling.

Radical/Political Graffiti

 
Anti-War Graffiti in Spain

Graffiti is sometimes seen as part of a subculture that rebels against extant societal authorities, or against authority as such. However these considerations are often divergent and relating to a wide range of practices. For some, graffiti is not only an art but also a lifestyle. For others it is a matter of political practice and forms just one tool in an array of methodologies and technologies or so-called anti-technologies of resistance.

File:French anti-war sticker.jpg
Anti war sticker

The developments of graffiti art which took place in art galleries, colleges as well as "on the street" or "underground", contributed to the resurfacing in the 1990's of a far more overtly politicized form in the subvertising, culture jamming or tactical media movements. These movements or styles tend to classify the artists by their relationship to their social and economic contexts, since graffiti art is still illegal in many forms, in most countries.

Contemporary practitioners are therefore varied and often conflicting in their practices. There are those individuals such as Alexander Brener who have used the medium to politicise other art forms, and have taken the prison sentences forced onto them, as a means of further protest.

File:FrenchCemetery103004-01.jpg
Neo-Nazi defacement of a Jewish cemetery in France.

Anonymous groups and individuals, however, are very varied also, with anonymous anti-capitalist art groups like the Space Hijackers who, in 2004, did an action about the capitalistic elments of Banksy and his use of political imagery. There are also those artists who are funded by a combination of government funding as well as commercial or private means, like irational.org who recently coined the term Advert Expressionism, replacing the word Abstract for Advert, in Clement Greenberg's essay on Abstract Expressionism.

Graffiti is also used by political groups and individuals as a tool to spread a their point of view. This can be described as propaganda graffiti. This practice, as it is illegal is generally employed by groups excluded from the political mainstream (e.g. far-left or far-right groups) Who justify there activity by pointing out that they do not have the money to buy advertising to get their message across and that they do not control the mainstream press.

This type of graffiti is often crude, for example fascist supporters often scrawl swastikas and other Nazi images. Illegal fly posting, is also a popular method. In the U.K tattered posters advertising the February 15th Global protests against war on Iraq can still be found.

Famous Graffiti Artists

Street Art / Post Graffiti

Avant-Garde

Political

In film

  • Style Wars, 1983: Directed by Tony Silver, Produced by Henry Chalfant. Represents a history of the 1980s NYC graffiti scene as seen thru the eyes of its participants. Style Wars at imdb.
  • Beat Street, 1984: Directed by Stan Lathan, produced by Harry Belafonte and David V. Picker. A drama that takes place in the emergent hip-hop scene of early 1980s New York City. Among the first popular mainstream movies to feature MCing, DJing, graffiti art, and breakdancing, Beat Street features appearances by many pioneers in these arts. Beat Street at imdb
  • Turk 182 (1985) is a fictional account of graffiti used for political purposes in New York City. The name might be a reference to TAKI 183. Turk 182 at imdb

In the press

  • Beaty, Jonathan. "Zap! You've Been Tagged", Time Magazine, September 10, 1990. p. 43.
  • Bennet, James. "A New Arsenal of Weapons to Tag Graffiti Artists", New York Times, September 27, 1992. p. E-2.
  • "Fade to Gray in Gotham", U.S. News, May 22, 1989. p. 12.
  • Reichenbach, Jean. "Graffiti", Columns, March 1991. pp. 24-27.
  • "Scorecard", Newsweek Magazine, August 10, 1992. p. 6.

In literature

  • Reisser, Mwinkand, Behrend: DAIM - daring to push the boundaries getting-up/reisser (Germany) 2004 ISBN 3-00-014155-3
  • van Treeck, Bernhard: Das große Graffiti-Lexikon, Lexikon-Imprint-Verlag, Berlin, 2001, ISBN 3-89601-292-X
  • van Treeck, Bernhard and Metze-Prou, Sibylle: Pochoir - die Kunst des Schablonengraffiti, Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin, 2000, ISBN 3-89602-327-6
  • van Treeck, Bernhard: Street Art Berlin, Schwarzkopf und Schwarzkopf, Berlin, 1999 ISBN 3-89602-191-5
  • van Treeck, Bernhard: Wandzeichnungen, Edition aragon, Moers, 1995 ISBN 3-89535-424-4
  • Urban Discipline 2000 - Graffiti-Art Peters/Reisser/Zahlmann. 2000 Ausstellungskatalog getting-up (Germany) ISBN 3-00-006154-1
  • Urban Discipline 2001 - Graffiti-Art Peters/Reisser/Zahlmann. 2001 Ausstellungskatalog getting-up (Germany) ISBN 3-00-007960-2
  • Urban Discipline 2002 - Graffiti-Art Peters/Reisser/Zahlmann. 2002 Ausstellungskatalog getting-up (Germany) ISBN 3-00-009421-0
  • Exhibizion, Z 2000 Ute Baumgärtel. 2000 Ausstellungskatalog/Exhibition catalogue Akademie der Künste Berlin Die Gestalten Verlag (Deutschland) ISBN 3-931126-34-x
  • Graffiti Art #1 Deutschland - Germany Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany), ISBN 3-89602-028-5
  • Graffiti Art #3 Writing in München, 1995, Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany) ISBN 3-89602-045-5
  • Graffiti Art #4 Ruhrgebiet-Rheinland Hrsg: O. Schwarzkopf. 1995 Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany) ISBN 3-89602-051-x
  • Graffiti Art #7 Norddeutschland 1997 Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany), ISBN 3-89602-136-2
  • Graffiti Art #9 Wände Hrsg: B. van Treeck. 1998 Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany) ISBN 3-89602-161-3
  • Graffiti Art #8 Charakters B. van Treeck. 1998 Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany) ISBN 3-89602-144-3
  • Broken Windows Graffiti NYC James Murray, Karla Murray. 2002 Ginko Press (USA), ISBN 1-58423-078-9
  • NYC Graffiti, Michiko Rico Nosé. 2000 Graphic-Sha Publishing (Japan) ISBN 4-7661-1177-x
  • Graffiti Oggi Karin Dietz. 2001 Ausstellungskatalog/Exhibition catalogue, Arte Contemporanea Hirmer/M. Wiedemann (Italy)
  • Aspects of Graffiti, Wortbüro Stefan Michel/Zürich. 2001 Ausstellungskatalog, Rote Fabrik (Switzerland)
  • Backjumps Sketch Book, Adrian Nabi. 1996, Backjumps (Deutschland), ISBN 3-9806846-0-1
  • HamburgCity Graffiti, 2003, Publikat Verlag (Deutschland), ISBN 3-980-74786-7
  • Cope 2, True Legend, Donatien B. Orns. 2003, Righters.com (France), ISBN 2-9520-0608-6
  • Le graffiti dans tous ses états, 2002, Ausstellungskatalog, Taxie Gallery (France)
  • AT Down, 2000, Octopus (Frankreich), ISBN 2-9516384-0-x
  • Stylefile, Blackbook Sessions.01, Markus Christl. 2002, Publikat Verlag (Germany), ISBN 3-9807478-2-4
  • Hip-Hop Lexikon, S. Krekow, J. Steiner, M. Taupitz. 1999, Lexikon Imprint Verlag (Germany), ISBN 3-89602-205-9
  • Swiss Graffiti, S. von Koeding, B. Suter. 1998, Edition Aragon (Germany), ISBN 3-89535-461-9
  • Graffiti Lexikon, B. van Treeck. 1998, Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf (Germany), ISBN 3-89602-160-5
  • Writer Lexikon, Bernhard van Treeck, 1995, Edition Aragon (Germany), ISBN 3-89535-428-7
  • Street Art Köln, B. van Treeck. 1996, Edition Aragon (Germany), ISBN 3-89535-434-1
  • Hall of Fame, M. Todt, B. van Treeck . 1995, Edition Aragon (Germany), ISBN 3-89535-430-9
  • Best of German graffiti. Band 1, Timeless-X. 2001, Verlag H. M. Hauschild (Germany), ISBN 3-89757-121-8
  • Langages de Rue #2, Graff-It!. 2004, Verlag Graf-It! (France), ISBN 2-914714-02-5
  • Street Art, Tristan Manco. Thames & Hudson. 2004 (UK), ISBN 0-500-28469-5
  • Grafftit World, Nicholas Ganz. Thames & Hudson. 2004 (UK) ISBN 0-500-51170-5

Street Art/ Post-Graffiti

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